Many hand, wrist and forearm conditions result from the original causative factor of muscular weakness, muscular imbalance and chronic avascularity (lack of blood supply) to the muscles and tissues. Traumatic injuries, both acute and cumulative, lead to pain, chronic adhesion and scarring. Proper preventative and rehabilitative exercise procedures applied to the lower arm, wrist and hand are vital and have historically been ignored.
The present device provides a diverse solution to address these problems, as it allows the hand to be moved through a full, natural 3-dimensional planes of motion, against resistance at all times, and respects reciprocal muscle group balance. Daily use of the device will improve muscle strength, muscle balance, blood supply and lymph drainage, and stimulate all peripheral nerve roots to the hand muscles. Full natural range of motion training also ensures the development of healthy, elongated muscle tissue. The device is effective at reducing treatment times, as well as reducing the risk of future injury. To couple the resistance of many planes of motion into few continuous exercises is convenient for the user.
Standard treatment applications include carpal tunnel syndrome, tennis elbow, golfer's elbow, tendonitis, stroke rehabilitation, sprain/strain/fracture rehabilitation, osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, DeQuervain's Syndrome, RSI's (repetitive stress injuries) and neuropathies, among many others.
It is very rare to see athletes, musicians and workers properly train their hands and hand muscles for their given activity. While it is true that many athletes, musicians and workers strengthen grip strength (or the closing of the hands), it is very rare that even the most elite athletes strengthen the finger and thumb extensor and abductor muscles (opening muscles). This is an extremely important point because the lack of a balanced hand training approach means that the stronger flexor muscles of the hand dominate the weaker opposing extensor muscles, leading to hand muscle imbalance and eventually to performance limitations and the greater risk of injury.
There are approximately nine muscles that open the hand and nine muscles that close the hand. These muscle groups are opposing in nature, and attach throughout the lower arm (fingers, thumb, hand, wrist, forearm and elbow). A great imbalance will exist at the joints of the fingers, thumbs, wrists, forearms, and elbows when the hand muscles are imbalanced.
Additionally, when only the gripping motion is resisted, the hand is never exercised through its entire range of its extension and abduction motions. The result is that the tissues (muscle, tendon, ligament) and joint surfaces (cartilage) relating to the extension and abduction action of the hand develop a condition of avascularity. They are weaker and more easily injured. The phrase “move it or lose it” refers to the body supplying less nutrients and oxygen to areas that it does not use regularly. This device is an all around reciprocal muscle group training solution for the hand, wrist, elbow and forearm.
Athletes that would benefit from the device participate in golf, tennis/racquet sports, basketball, baseball, hockey, football, climbing, motor sports (motor-cross, jet-ski, snowmobile, auto-racing, etc.), bowling, cricket, martial arts, body building, sailing, arm-wrestling, to name a few. Musicians who play string instruments, piano, drums, and wind instruments, to name a few, would benefit from the device, as would workers such as cashiers, production line workers, laborers, dentists/dental hygienists, surgeons, sewing/craft workers and trades specialists (i.e. carpenters).
Prior art exists which attempt to resist the closing and opening action of the hand. U.S. Pat. No. 6,228,001 (Johnson et al) shows a device that does not allow the muscles of the hand to move through its full, natural planes of motion. Firstly, the central flexion resistance member is too small to resist much of the flexion range of motion (i.e. the hand does not close in a small circle). Secondly, the product is too small to allow the fingers and thumbs to be extended and abducted fully. Thirdly, the design of the finger engaging outside rim does not control the resistance vectors that would respect the resistance to the natural centrally resisted vectors of the extension and abduction motions of the fingers and thumb. Additionally, the extension and abduction action required cannot be independently controlled separate of the flexion action, as the extension and abduction cords are not interchangeable with the central sphere.
U.S. Provisional Application 60/222,796 (mine previous) does not work. The central cord structure does not resist extension/abduction in a natural means, as resistance to finger and thumb extension and abduction begins at the top and bottom of the flexion member (ball) respectively, as opposed to from a more central natural location. The current design couples the resistance to both abduction and extension of the digits, as opposed to mostly abduction, as in the said prior art.
As well, because of the distance between the ball's horizon and the central flexible cord's finger and thumb loops in U.S. Pat. No., there is a lull in resistance as the exercise transfers from gripping to the extension and abduction action and vice versa. The current device provides a “buried web” design, allowing the finger and thumb loops (or holds) to be located on the horizon of the flexion member. An alternate embodiment may attach the finger and thumb loops directly to the flexion member and respects the proper resistance vectors of both motions. The present device, using the buried web design, ensures that resistance is always offered at any point of the exercise, yet still allows the extension member to be removable.
Additionally, the design of U.S. Provisional Application 60/222,796 structurally causes extremely quick breakdown of the flexion member due to the degree of friction of the extension member on the flexion member during use. The current “buried web” and “volcano exits” design removes the friction-prone portion of the flexion member where the extension member exits. The result is reduced device breakdown.
Another benefit of the current design of the flexion member is that, by itself, it provides proper resistance to the pinching action, interphalangeal flexion action and opposition action of the fingers and thumb. These exercises were not possible with U.S. Provisional Application 60/222,796. The current invention will have more diversity to health care professionals, as well as athletes, musicians, workers and the general public. A user can train wide pinch by pinching the outside body of the ball, medium pinch by inserting both the thumb and said finger into both volcano cord exits, and narrow pinch by inserting said finger into volcano cord exit and thumb on the ball surface. Both wide and narrow opposition can be resisted. Interphalangeal flexion can be resisted using any digit, mimicking the action of the cording hand, for example, for guitarists and violinists.
The volcano design of the flexion member also allows the extension member to be loaded into the product easily by hand, without the use of a wire hook, as is the case in U.S. Provisional Application 60/222,796. The extension member must be inserted when it is changed for reasons of size or resistance preference, or when the extension member is accidentally displaced from the flexion member.
Another major problem with U.S. Provisional Application 60/222,796 was that the extension member was easily dislodged from the flexion member. The current invention boasts an extension member that includes a “friction belly” expansion, which secures the extension member into the flexion member during use, yet still allows for interchangeability of extension member within the flexion member.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,454,681 (Brassil, et al) shows a webbed glove, which is firstly awkward to put on and take off, secondly is non-interchangeable between hands, thirdly is very difficult and complicated to scale for resistances and size, and lastly, does not avail the separation of flexion and extension resistances. It would also be expensive to manufacture (and therefore to buy) and would be complicated and difficult to fit. The current inventive device is easily interchangeable for either the left or right hand, is easy to fit, has distinct resistances and is cost effective.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,750,734 (Greenfield) shows a web device which functions in only 2-dimensions of resistance, meaning that the design of the product would dictate the motion and resistances of the exercise and not the natural hand motion and its relative natural vectors. The present device allows the natural 3-dimensional motion of the hand to dictate the exercise, with appropriate natural resistances.